Headed For Rejection
by Lilli Vanessi
Summary: ONESHOT. Johnny's nervous about asking a girl out.


AN: Apologies for my "WTF" typos. I believe I fixed them all, but you never know. Lord knows I'm talented at making them. Please do not hesitate to point them out to me if I missed a couple. That being said, feel free to point out whatever else you liked, disliked, wanted to scream at your computer screen for, etc. All feedback—the good, bad, and the ugly—is more than welcome and greatly appreciated. ;)

Disclaimer: S.E. Hinton owns; I borrow.

* * *

The smoke swirled off the tip of Johnny's cigarette in small grey clouds. He watched them dissipate in the cold February air before pressing the cigarette to his lips again. Inhaling deeply, he allowed himself to savor the flavor for a moment, then exhaled, expelling the same grey clouds back into the air.

He hoped the nicotine would sink in quickly. Lord, did he ever need it. In a couple moments, he was going to do something he'd never successfully done before—ask a girl out. As much as the thought terrified him, he had to. The fact that he was sixteen and still hadn't gone on a single date was embarrassing. Especially when he was comparing himself to Dallas, who not only had dated women, but slept with a good number of them, too.

He groaned inwardly; he was making this a lot harder than it had to be. There really didn't seem to be much to it whenever Steve or Soda hit on a girl. He certainly wouldn't want to use pick up lines, like Two-Bit might, but he figured he could probably do a little sweet-talking if he had to. He'd seen every member of the gang win over a girl—even Pony—just by using flattery and compliments.

It wasn't that he didn't know how to ask a girl out, though; it was the process of doing so. For whatever reason, the second he tried to even talk to a female, his words started jumble and sometimes they just quit coming period. He was awkward—and being awkward _never _helped when it came to talking to women. Besides, it wasn't just _any_ girl this time; it was Leanne Meadows. God, she was beautiful. She had long, curly, blond hair that bounced when she walked, porcelain skin, and emerald green eyes. She was perfect in every way, and he was … well, he wasn't much to look at. Not in his eyes at least.

That was the other problem. Not only did he act awkward when it came time to asking girls out, he looked awkward, too. His big, black eyes really stood out, and not in a good way either. Looking at them was like staring into nothing, he fathomed. And if that didn't turn people off, it was his small stature. He looked about the same age as Ponyboy, but Pony at least looked healthy. He hadn't had a good meal in weeks, and it definitely showed in the way his bones jutted out.

The anticipation of waiting for Leanne to come ate away at him, and he really as beginning to wish Two-Bit hadn't decided to play matchmaker and invite them both over to his place. Leanne probably thought Two-Bit was the one interested in her, and it wouldn't shock Johnny if she paid no attention to him at all once she came. If she came at all…

He'd been waited for what seemed like an eternity, and as much as he wanted to prolong the agony of seeing her, he really wanted to get it over with, too. His hands were twitching, and his face was already beet red. If it weren't so cold out, he was sure he'd be sweating, too. He wondered how on Earth people like Two-Bit managed to ask so many girls out; he couldn't even ask one.

He lit up what had to be his sixth cigarette and began to smoke it. If she didn't show up soon, he might just pass out from the anxiousness.

"Golly, kid, you look like you just seen a ghost!" Two-Bit roared, bursting through the front door and joining Johnny on the front porch.

"Shuddup, Two-Bit." Johnny stared at his feet, trying to hide the fact he was embarrassed.

"Aw, c'mon Johnnycake…" Two-Bit slapped the back of Johnny's shoulder. "It ain't gonna be so bad."

But Johnny remained unconvinced. It was easy for Two-Bit to say it wasn't going to be bad considering he'd never had issues getting a girl to like him in the first place. There was just something about him that the ladies couldn't resist. Humor, looks, charm—all were things Johnny didn't have.

"Want me to show you how it's done?" Two-Bit didn't even wait for a reply and went on explaining his so-called "rules" of asking girls out.

The "rules" seemed rather ridiculous to Johnny. Maybe they worked for Two-Bit, but they certainly wouldn't work for him. Apparently he was supposed to wink after the delivered the suggestive line. None of this made any sense to him. He figured he'd end up getting slapped if he came on to a girl that strongly, and he wondered why Two-Bit was able to get away with all this. Again, there was just something about him that made him irresistible...

He tuned out most of Two-Bit's speech and paid more attention to the cigarette he was smoking instead. Every now and then he nodded, giving Two-Bit the impression he was taking note of everything. As much as Two-Bit was annoying him, he figured he was trying to be helpful, however unconventional his methods of helping might have been.

"… and there you have it." Johnny was glad when it was finally over. Even though he hadn't really been listening, having Two-Bit lecture him about how to ask girls out was uncomfortable.

He nodded a bit and said thanks, hoping that'd cue Two-Bit into leaving him alone.

"Okay, you play you, and I'll play Leanne. Now go ahead and ask me out." So much for hoping. Johnny couldn't believe what he just heard. Two-Bit actually expected him to role-play with him? Hearing that speech was enough; this was just plain ridiculous.

"No." Johnny shook his head firmly and began to back away from him a couple feet. Two-Bit was crazy. There was no way he was going to act this scenario out with him.

"NO?" Two-Bit shrieked in a terrible impersonation of a high-pitched female voice. "I come here dressed all pretty and the first word you say to me is no?"

Two-Bit stood there, arms crossed, tapping his foot angrily. He rolled his eyes for good measure before falling out of character and smacking Johnny upside the head. "You just broke rule number one, ya knucklehead."

Johnny couldn't even remember what rule number one was, and quite frankly he didn't care. This was all insane, and he was sure he'd be headed straight for rejection if he followed any of this.

"Let's try this again, huh, Johnnycake?" Johnny wanted so badly to smack him. He was nervous enough as it was, and this was far from helping.

He shot Two-Bit a glare, but Two-Bit ignored him, keeping right on with his act. "I ain't standing here for my health, Johnny," he hissed in the same awful voice as before.

"You gonna say anything to me?" Two-Bit propped his hands on his hips and pouted, and Johnny'd had enough.

"Leanne doesn't even sound like that!" he snapped. "And this is just crazy, Two-Bit. I ain't doing any of it." He didn't normally lose it with people—especially Two-Bit—but he was really driving him insane. He had no clue how any of this was supposed to help him.

He turned to walk away. Part of him figured he might as well just take off; there was no way Leanne was going to go out with him anyway. But, unfortunately, it was too late for run. He took no more than a couple steps forward, and there she was right in front of him, giggling. _Shit, _he thought. _Shit, shit, shit. _She'd probably seen the whole thing.

Two-Bit nudged him, pushing him closer to her. "Good luck, kid. You're gonna need it." He chuckled and scurried off, leaving Johnny there, alone with Leanne Meadows. _Thanks. Thanks a lot, Two-Bit._

"I'm sorry," Johnny apologized quickly. It was the first thing he could think of to say. She probably deserved as many apologies as he could give her after having to see that dreadful scene.

"It's okay." She forced a smile and looked down at her feet.

Silence followed, and Johnny was sure he'd just blown it in no less than two words. Apologizing _had_ to be against the "rules", and if so, that'd be the only rule that'd make sense to him. It certainly had just killed the atmosphere.

Christ, he was mortified. His stomach was doing somersaults, and he hoped he wouldn't puke. Puking on her would just make everything that much worse. He was already certain she'd spread word of him role-playing with Two-Bit to every girl in the entire high school. No one would ever want to go out with him now.

"The answer is yes by the way." Leanne spoke softly and was blushing. She must've been just as nervous as he was, and he couldn't have been happier.

He wasn't sure if he should thank Two-Bit or bash his head in. Probably both. But either way, it didn't matter anymore; he'd just landed his first date.

* * *

And that's it. Thanks for reading. Thanks for reviewing—both this and Bullet With Butterfly Wings! Y'all are awesome, and I can't thank you enough. :)


End file.
